Primal Urge: Say hello to the Playstation Generation. And say hello to their sports car

Cupit, like many in the auto industry, looked at the success of so-called Gen-Y vehicles like the boxy Scion xB and assumed today's young car buyers were more interested in the social aspect of car ownership rather than the quality of the driving experience. "Our original sketches had a four-door configuration because we figured the social aspect was important," he says. "We thought they wanted a fun car they could hang out in with their buddies, easy to get into the back seat, and with room for four or five. But they wanted an all-out performance car that was easy to buy."

What everyone had missed was the influence of driving games like Gran Turismo on an emerging generation of car buyers across America. There are kids growing up in Iowa and Nebraska and Ohio who are more familiar with the big- horsepower GTRs and Evos and 911s they race and tune in cyberspace than they are with old Buicks and pickup trucks. "These guys love video games," says Cupit. "They know those cars; they're legendary. And they want that kind of thrill in their first [real] car."The Urge is all about delivering that thrill. It starts with the lean, pared-down look, inspired by the exposed hardware on high-performance "naked" bikes, the ones without the sleek fairings wrapped around the frame. (It comes as no surprise to learn Cupit's garage is full of old Italian bikes: Moto Guzzis, Laverdas, Ducatis.) Part of the Urge's hood is glass, so you can see the engine and some of the car's structure. The glass in the lower half of the doors retracts so you get a wind rush through the cabin.

The bodywork is pulled tightly around the mechanicals, tapered so much at the front and rear that the fenders almost look stuck on, like cycle guards. "It's not the classic wedge that you see on a lot of sports cars," says Cupit. "It's kind of wide and stocky, but it looks light and nimble." From some angles, it looks rather like a Lotus 340R, the stripped-back street racer built off the mid-engine Elise platform.